Lava Bear

Logo Animation

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The artists of Mill+ crafted a logo with personal meaning for production company Lava Bear Films. The design first screened at the premiere of David Michôd's "The Rover", Lava Bear's first feature film starring Guy Pearce and Robert Pattinson, at Cannes Film Festival 2014 before reaching theaters worldwide.

To Lava Bear CEO David Linde and Mill+ senior art director Manija Emran, this project meant more than creating just a 3D logo. Emran used nature-inspired visuals and sounds to weave years of Linde's boyhood imagination into the seven-second clip, tying it all together under the concept of building intimate, extraordinary stories from a blank canvas - just as Lava Bear does in its exclusive projects.

Emran's inspiration began with the genesis of Lava Bear's name. When Linde attended camp in the forests of Oregon as a child, he was told to look out for "lava bears" and believed in the tale until he was a teenager. Emran used the backstory to reflect the mythology of the company in the logo: "I presented several concepts and look directions, from live action to practical, CG, illustration and stop motion. Once we settled on the illustration concept, we had a blueprint of the flat design and transitions; then we had to make it come to life! Justin Sucara did an impeccable job with incredibly fine detail and timings when it came to the ink trails. Then came the score: I wanted something unique with hints of forest sounds. Echo Lab did a lovely job with it."

Emran's beautiful, simplistic thought process behind the design is what made it organic. She explains, "I thought of different approaches and tales that touch upon the imagination, include a hint of fantasy, give a nod to the paper logo and, of course, speak to what Lava Bear does: bring tales to life."